Warren Glenn Harding Sr. (January 8, 1921 – April 2, 2005) was an American politician from the state of

Texas Texas (, ; Spanish language, Spanish: ''Texas'', ''Tejas'') is a state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. At 268,596 square miles (695,662 km2), and with more than 29.1 million residents in 2 ...

, a member of the

Democratic Party Democratic Party most often refers to: *Democratic Party (United States) Democratic Party and similar terms may also refer to: Active parties Africa *Botswana Democratic Party *Democratic Party of Equatorial Guinea *Gabonese Democratic Party *Demo ...

who served as

Texas State Treasurer Texas State Treasurer was an elected constitutional officer in the executive branch of the state government of Texas, responsible for overseeing the financial operations of state government. The position was established in the Constitution of ...

from 1977 to 1983. He was preceded in office by

Jesse James Jesse Woodson James (September 5, 1847April 3, 1882) was an American outlaw, bank and train robber, guerrilla and leader of the James–Younger Gang. Raised in the " Little Dixie" area of Western Missouri, James and his family maintained stro ...

and succeeded by

Ann Richards Dorothy Ann Richards (née Willis; September 1, 1933 – September 13, 2006) was an American politician who served as the 45th governor of Texas from 1991 to 1995. A Democrat, she first came to national attention as the Texas State Treasurer, ...

. Harding won election as county treasurer for

Dallas County, Texas Dallas County is the second-most populous county in the U.S. state of Texas. As of the 2020 U.S. census, the population was 2,613,539, making it the ninth-most populous county in the country. Dallas County is included in the Dallas-Arlington-F ...

in 1950, and served in the role through 1977. Governor

Dolph Briscoe Dolph Briscoe Jr. (April 23, 1923 – June 27, 2010) was an American rancher and businessman from Uvalde, Texas, who was the 41st governor of Texas between 1973 and 1979. He was a member of the Democratic Party. Because of his re-election foll ...

appointed him as state treasurer in 1977 after James died in office. He was elected to a full term in 1978, but ended his 1982 re-election campaign against Richards when he accepted a plea agreement after being charged with misusing his office. He ran in a special election for the United States House of Representatives in 1985 but lost.

Early life

Harding was born on January 8, 1921, to Ethel () and William Moore Harding, on a farm in

Princeton, Texas Princeton is a city in Collin County, Texas, United States. As of the 2010 census it had a population of 6,807, with an increase to 17,027 in 2020. History In the late 1870s T. B. Wilson and his brother George began farming near the site of ...

. The Harding family is not related to

Warren G. Harding Warren Gamaliel Harding (November 2, 1865 – August 2, 1923) was the 29th president of the United States, serving from 1921 until his death in 1923. A member of the Republican Party, he was one of the most popular sitting U.S. presidents. A ...

, who was

President-elect of the United States The president-elect of the United States is the candidate who has presumptively won the United States presidential election and is awaiting inauguration to become the president. There is no explicit indication in the U.S. Constitution as to when ...

when he was born. The Harding family moved to

Dallas Dallas () is the List of municipalities in Texas, third largest city in Texas and the largest city in the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex, the List of metropolitan statistical areas, fourth-largest metropolitan area in the United States at 7.5 ...

when he was young, and he graduated from schools in the

Dallas Independent School District The Dallas Independent School District (Dallas ISD or DISD) is a school district based in Dallas, Texas (USA). It operates schools in much of Dallas County and is the second-largest school district in Texas and the seventeenth-largest in the U ...

. Harding attended

North Texas State University The University of North Texas (UNT) is a public research university in Denton, Texas. It was founded as a nonsectarian, coeducational, private teachers college in 1890 and was formally adopted by the state 11 years later."Denton Normal School," ...

and

Southern Methodist University , mottoeng = "The truth will make you free" , established = , type = Private research university , accreditation = SACS , academic_affiliations = , religious_affiliation = United Methodist Church , president = R. Gerald Turner , prov ...

. He earned a

bachelor's degree A bachelor's degree (from Middle Latin ''baccalaureus'') or baccalaureate (from Modern Latin ''baccalaureatus'') is an undergraduate academic degree awarded by colleges and universities upon completion of a course of study lasting three to six ...

in government. During

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

, Harding served in the

United States Navy The United States Navy (USN) is the maritime service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. It is the largest and most powerful navy in the world, with the estimated tonnage ...

. After the war, he became a deputy district clerk for

Political career

As a member of the

, Harding ran in an election for county treasurer of Dallas County in 1950, in part due to his famous name. He won a four-year term. In 1956, he ran for election to be the

against

incumbent The incumbent is the current holder of an official, office or position, usually in relation to an election. In an election for president, the incumbent is the person holding or acting in the office of president before the election, whether seek ...

in the Democratic Party

primary election Primary elections, or direct primary are a voting process by which voters can indicate their preference for their party's candidate, or a candidate in general, in an upcoming general election, local election, or by-election. Depending on the ...

; James defeated Harding, receiving 518,102 votes while Harding received 367,067 in the unofficial vote count. In 1964, Harding was elected president of the National Association of County Treasurers and Finance Officers, which represented over 3,000 counties in the United States. The National Association of County Treasurers and Finance Officers named him an outstanding treasurer and he won the first Outstanding Treasurer Award from the County Treasurer's Association of Texas, of which he also served as president. Harding continued to serve as county treasurer until October 5, 1977, when

Governor A governor is an administrative leader and head of a polity or political region, ranking under the head of state and in some cases, such as governors-general, as the head of state's official representative. Depending on the type of political ...

appointed Harding to the position of State Treasurer after James' death. In 1978, Harding was elected to a full four-year term.

Charges

In 1982,

Ronnie Earle Ronald Dale Earle (February 23, 1942 – April 5, 2020) was an American politician and judge who was, from January 1977 to January 2009, the District Attorney for Travis County, Texas. He became nationally known for filing charges against House ...

, the

district attorney In the United States, a district attorney (DA), county attorney, state's attorney, prosecuting attorney, commonwealth's attorney, or state attorney is the chief prosecutor and/or chief law enforcement officer representing a U.S. state in a l ...

for

Travis County, Texas Travis County is located in south central Texas. As of the 2020 census, the population was 1,290,188. It is the fifth-most populous county in Texas. Its county seat is Austin, the capital of Texas. The county was established in 1840 and is na ...

, investigated Harding for misusing his office. Harding was indicted on two third-degree felony charges of official misconduct for allegedly having two state employees work on his reelection campaign during time they were supposed to be working for the state. The indictments came mere days before the election filing deadline, and three challengers entered the race. Harding continued his campaign in the Democratic primary and finished second in the first round of balloting, advancing to a runoff election against

. After initially entering an innocent plea, but before the runoff election, Harding pled guilty to a misdemeanor offense in return for prosecutors dismissing the felony charges and Harding withdrew his candidacy. Richards was elected to office in 1982. Harding paid a $2,000 fine and reimbursed the state $2,000. District Attorney Earle also alleged that Harding had used his position to benefit his son, Warren Jr., who sold bonds for the

brokerage firm A broker is a person or firm who arranges transactions between a buyer and a seller for a commission when the deal is executed. A broker who also acts as a seller or as a buyer becomes a principal party to the deal. Neither role should be confu ...

Rauscher Pierce Refsnes. No charges were filed on that allegation. In 1985,

Sam B. Hall Jr. Samuel Blakeley Hall Jr. (January 11, 1924 – April 10, 1994) was an American lawyer, politician, and judge. He was a member of the United States House of Representatives from Texas's 1st congressional district from 1976 to 1985 and a United Sta ...

, who served in the

United States House of Representatives The United States House of Representatives, often referred to as the House of Representatives, the U.S. House, or simply the House, is the Lower house, lower chamber of the United States Congress, with the United States Senate, Senate being ...

representing , resigned when he was appointed to the

United States District Court for the Eastern District of Texas The United States District Court for the Eastern District of Texas (in case citations, E.D. Tex.) is a federal court in the United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit, Fifth Circuit (except for patent claims and claims against the U.S. ...

. Harding ran in a

special election A by-election, also known as a special election in the United States and the Philippines, a bye-election in Ireland, a bypoll in India India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-larges ...

to serve the remainder of Hall's term. In the first round of the election, held on June 29, Harding finished in seventh place out of eight candidates, with

Edd Hargett Edward Eugene Hargett (born June 26, 1947) is a former American football quarterback for Texas A&M University who went on to play professionally for the National Football League (NFL)'s New Orleans Saints and Houston Oilers. He later played for t ...

and

Jim Chapman Jim Chapman may refer to: * Jim Chapman (congressman) (born 1945), American businessman and politician ** Jim Chapman Lake, a lake in Texas named after the politician * Jim Chapman (footballer) (born 1965), Scottish footballer * Jim Chapman (Intern ...

finishing in first and second place, respectively, and advancing to a

runoff election The two-round system (TRS), also known as runoff voting, second ballot, or ballotage, is a voting method used to elect a single candidate, where voters cast a single vote for their preferred candidate. It generally ensures a majoritarian resul ...

Personal life

Harding and his wife, LaVelle, had three children. They resided on a ranch in

Brownsboro, Texas Brownsboro is a city in Henderson County, Texas, United States. The population was 1,212 at the 2020 census, up from 1,039 at the 2010 census. The city is on Texas State Highway 31. History Brownsboro was first settled in 1849 by John (Red) Br ...

. Their son, Warren Jr., ran for

Texas Comptroller of Public Accounts The Texas Comptroller of Public Accounts is an executive branch position created by the Texas Constitution. The comptroller is popularly elected every four years, and is primarily tasked with collecting all state tax revenue and estimating the am ...

and won the

Republican Party Republican Party is a name used by many political parties around the world, though the term most commonly refers to the United States' Republican Party. Republican Party may also refer to: Africa *Republican Party (Liberia) * Republican Part ...

nomination in the 1990 elections. Harding was in

freemasonry Freemasonry or Masonry refers to fraternal organisations that trace their origins to the local guilds of stonemasons that, from the end of the 13th century, regulated the qualifications of stonemasons and their interaction with authorities ...

, as a member of the

Scottish Rite The Ancient and Accepted Scottish Rite of Freemasonry (the Northern Masonic Jurisdiction in the United States often omits the ''and'', while the English Constitution in the United Kingdom omits the ''Scottish''), commonly known as simply the Sco ...

. Harding died April 2, 2005, in Dallas, Texas, and is interred at the

Texas State Cemetery The Texas State Cemetery (TSC) is a cemetery located on about just east of downtown Austin, the capital of the U.S. state of Texas. Originally the burial place of Edward Burleson, Texas Revolutionary general and vice-president of the Republic of ...

Austin Austin is the capital city of the U.S. state of Texas, as well as the seat and largest city of Travis County, with portions extending into Hays and Williamson counties. Incorporated on December 27, 1839, it is the 11th-most-populous city ...

.''Dallas Morning News'', April 6, 2005

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Harding, Warren Glenn 1921 births 2005 deaths Burials at Texas State Cemetery People from Collin County, Texas Politicians from Dallas Military personnel from Texas University of North Texas alumni Southern Methodist University alumni State treasurers of Texas Texas Democrats United States Navy personnel of World War II 20th-century American politicians American Freemasons Texas politicians convicted of crimes